Walking on Blvd Beaumarchais, you can find some real Parisian gems. One of them is Merci, a well known chic, ethnic concept store, hidden at the back of a courtyard in number 111 of the Boulevard. At the entrance to the store, there is an old red...

Kong restaurant is one of the stylish and trendies places in Paris. Its glass rooftop on the second floor allow the diners to overlook Paris’ lights at night. Very hip and trendy location, which makes the night in Paris very magical. Some of you...

Astier de Villatte is well known for its light weight white porcelain plates and dishes, all shown in a big wooden closet at the entrance hall of the store, alongside home perfumes, candles and other colored decorative dishes. It serves as a...

Yes, Angelina on the Rue de Rivoli (around the Tuileries Garden and the Louvre) is a tourist spot, but it is still one of the best places in Paris for hot chocolate. Their menu of pastries and other small dishes is good, but don't miss out on the...

Who doesn't want to know how to cook French cuisine? Even I, lacking any sense of cooking, would love to learn how to make a delicious chocolate mousse, for myself and my guests. For this matter, Paris is filled with cooking schools that offer...

The French are well known for their delicate baguettes, the ricH butter croissants, and sweet and colorful macaroons. Macaroons or in French ‘le macaron,’ are small round meringue like cookies, made of sugar and eggs, stuffed with light cream or...

Petit Pan is a kid-wonder brand. It has a few stores in Paris (in fact, in other locations all over Europe) but the one I’ve visited was at a tiny store in the heart of the Latin Quarter at rue du Bac. The brand Petit Pan is known by its colorful...

Once a meeting place for alumni of the elite Ecole Centrale school in France, and built as the private home of the Duchesse of Rivoli, Princess d'Essling, the Maison Champs Elysées was recently turned into a discreet luxury hotel, designed...

One of the most talked about hotels in Paris, Hotel Costes is located in one of the most fashionable streets, Rue Saint Honore. The hotel is best known for its fine bar and courtyard cafe and for its sexy atmosphere and crowd. If you don't book a...

Mama Shelter Hotel, designed and owned by Philippe Starck, is located in the 20th arrondissement. The hotel was opened on September 5th, 2008 by the Trigano family who also owns Club Med. The Trigano family hired Philippe Starck to design the...

After glowing stints at Fauchon and Le Bon Marché, pastry chef and author Sébastien Gaudard opened his own pâtisserie on rue des Martyrs, just south of Pigalle, 9 months ago; the speed of his ascent into the annals of traditional pastry-making...

Even after six years in Paris, I still find myself overwhelmed by the heaps of flaky pastries and dainty, multi-layer desserts that line bakery windows. These local joints on each block reel in passersby with the potent scent of butter and...

Paris on a Saturday morning. I am walking down Blvd, St-Germain. I feel strangely and completely out of sorts. This normally bustling boulevard is almost empty, devoid of cars and pedestrians. It's 11 am. Where is everyone? I walk past deserted...

On top of the famous cathedral our one rainy day gave just right amount of gravitas to the day. I love the feel of the photo as so many people recognize this place but no one has yet told me they got a better shot of it.

Upon arriving in Paris, one of the first sights I saw was at Notre Dame Cathedral. While taking pictures of the beautiful church, a couple who had just been married, were walking through the square. The bride had an absolutely beautiful dress, and...

5000 riders started the 2007 PBP. Plagued by bad weather on top of the customary challenges of distance and sleep deprivation, 1200 failed to finish. I finished the Paris Brest in just under the time limit. Another hallmark of randonneuring is...

My friend, who lives in Paris, told me about this Boulangerie, Du Pain et des Idees, so in my latest visit to Paris in June, I had to go there and try it for myself. We bought cheese in a local outdoor market and then got some bread and cakes and...

When deciding where to stay on my first two week trip to Paris, I had some very stringent criteria. I wanted the local experience and felt that a flat was more likely to offer that. So I eagerly began my search for something in a very safe and...